FOXBOROUGH, Mass.—Joe Flacco will be playing in the Super Bowl. Tom Brady and Peyton Manning will be watching it.

Get used to seeing Flacco on the big stage leading up to Super Bowl XLVII, where he and the Baltimore Ravens will meet the San Francisco 49ers. He has earned this spotlight. He has outplayed Brady and Manning, two certain of Hall of Fame quarterbacks, on this Ravens run to the AFC championship.

This was Flacco’s knockout punch, the bold statement that left no doubt about his legitimacy as a franchise quarterback. Flacco was superb, throwing for three touchdowns passes, 240 yards and no interceptions as the Ravens dominated the Patriots, 28-13, Sunday night and stormed into the Super Bowl in convincing fashion.

It’s time to stop comparing Flacco to every elite quarterback, and to appreciate him for what he is: a quarterback who has never missed the playoffs in five years, a quarterback who does not shrink on the road, a quarterback who avoids crucial mistakes and a quarterback who can win a Super Bowl.

Flacco may never win three Super Bowls like Brady. He may never collect MVP trophies like Manning. But Flacco was better than Brady on Sunday night. The week before, Flacco was better than Manning.

“He was making smart decisions, putting the ball in good places and giving his team a chance to win,” Patriots safety Steve Gregory said. “He is one of the elite quarterbacks. I know he gets a lot of flak for possibly not being that type of guy, but he is.”

Flacco could have pounded his chest and said, “I told you so,” or made a bunch of bold statements following Sunday’s victory. But Flacco is not that type of guy. He plays the game better than he talks it. And in the second half, when the Ravens’ offense needed him to deliver big throws, Flacco was at his best, as Baltimore ran off 21 consecutive points to win the game.

“It’s probably pretty sweet no matter how you do it and no matter what fashion it is,” Flacco said. “We didn’t come all the way here to play it safe and hope to win. We came here to win the AFC championship game, and you have to play to win. Everybody came up big when they needed to.”

Flacco had already proved himself to the Ravens. He outplayed Brady last year in the AFC championship game at Gillette, but the Patriots escaped with a three-point victory.

The Ravens already knew they had a quarterback who could help them win this type of game. Like the Ravens, he just wanted another opportunity.

“He’s a great quarterback,” said wideout Anquan Boldin, who caught two of Flacco’s three touchdown throws. “I don’t know why people keep doubting him. The bigger the situation is, the bigger he plays. He has proven that time and time again.”

This season, Flacco proved it under adverse circumstances. The Ravens’ defense suffered serious injuries to Ray Lewis and Terrell Suggs. When the offense sputtered during a three-game losing streak, coach John Harbaugh fired offensive coordinator Cam Cameron and replaced him with Jim Caldwell.

Flacco and Caldwell adjusted to each other, and with Flacco’s growth as a quarterback, he continued to earn the coaching staff’s trust. In the second half, the Ravens opened up their playbook and asked Flacco to lead them, and he delivered.

“We made a decision in the second half to cut it loose a little bit more,” Harbaugh said. “They’ve got a very stout front. We had to get away from challenging them and give Joe a chance to make some plays.”

Flacco relished the opportunity to cut it loose. His arm is one of the strongest in the NFL. He was not nearly as accurate with his deep throws Sunday as usual, but on short to intermediate throws, Flacco was on the money.

It also says something that in big games, Flacco usually avoids the big mistake, the kind of gaffes that Tony Romo has made in must-win situations. Flacco fits the DNA of the Ravens—resilient. Past disappointments did not break Flacco. They only made him more determined.

“I think this is a special team, and I think we’ve had a special team,” Flacco said. “These games are tough to win. We’ve put ourselves in position to win these games and eventually you’re going to push through.”

Sunday night was finally that time for Flacco, and his future looks bright—even beyond the Super Bowl. He is seeking a new contract, but it’s a foregone conclusion that the Ravens will not let Flacco go anywhere. He is their quarterback, and people can stop asking if Flacco is good enough to take them to the Super Bowl. That question has just been answered.